A US woman who shot and killed her husband and two adult children before taking her own life is thought to have committed the shocking crime as a result of being ostracised from the religion she was raised in.

A federal judge sentenced a former Arkansas judge Wednesday to five years in prison — a stiffer punishment than prosecutors recommended — after he admitted giving young male defendants lighter sentences in return for personal benefits that included sexual favours.

Every time I tell a mate I’m doing a story on cryptocurrency, they invariably ask me the same two questions: should they invest their own hard-earned money, and which cryptocurrency will get them a Lamborghini/yacht/island quickest?

In a 60 Minutes online exclusive, reporter Liz Hayes quizzed Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull on his relationship with the unpredictable Twitter aficionado and US president Donald Trump ahead of their meeting at the White House Friday.

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"That's just life. All of us make mistakes and every government has made mistakes, including the one which I led as well," Mr Rudd said.

Mr Rudd said there was too much "clutter and noise" in political debate, but voters wanted to know if their schools were properly funded and the economy was strong.

School funding was the top of the prime minister's agenda on Friday, when she signed a deal to deliver an extra $1.1 billion over six years for South Australian schools.

Having secured Gonski agreements with SA, the ACT and NSW, Ms Gillard wants the NT and other states to sign by June 30.

But the funding deal was somewhat overshadowed by controversy over the prime minister's interview with Perth broadcaster Howard Sattler, who has been sacked for asking Ms Gillard if her partner Tim Mathieson was gay.

"Well, that's absurd," she responded to Sattler's question on radio station 6PR on Thursday night.

Ms Gillard on Friday said such questioning could have a chilling effect on women and girls becoming public figures.

"I want young girls and women to be able to feel like they can be included in public life and not have to face questioning like the questioning I faced yesterday," she told reporters in Adelaide.

As speculation over Ms Gillard's future continued, Mr Rudd stood by his previous comment that under "no circumstance" would he return to the leadership.

Treasurer Wayne Swan said talk about leadership change is "fiction".

One Rudd supporter told AAP the ex-PM did not have the numbers to win a caucus ballot, but some Gillard backers were starting to realise voters would "immediately tune back in" to the government's message if she stood aside.

Industry Minister Greg Combet, who is reported to be among those reassessing the leadership, told Sky News: "I'm a supporter of the prime minister."

Asked whether Mr Rudd's marginal seat campaign was helpful, Mr Combet said: "He has made it clear he is doing that on the basis that he is working for the Labor party and supporting the prime minister ... (and) it is important help."